Wage Up OKC

09.12.18

The minimum wage in Oklahoma hasn't been raised in nearly a decade. The state of Oklahoma adopts the federal minimum wage as our state's minimum wage, so it is only adjusted when a bill is passed by the Senate and then signed into law by the President, and that doesn't happen very often. For example,the current minimum wage of $7.25 per hour went into effect in 2009, but was passed by lawmakers back in 2007.

This is why Wage Up OKC stepped onto the scene. Wage Up OKC is an initiative that was started by a small group of eighth grade students at Westminster School in Oklahoma City in May of 2018. These students decided to find a way to help raise the minimum wage in Oklahoma after learning that 16.3% of Oklahomans were living below the poverty line. That may not look too bad at first glance, however, that 16.3% represents over 620,000 people! As they continued their research, their findings led them to believe the current minimum wage was too low to support a household. So, they came up with a plan of action and decided to encourage businesses to pay their employees a "living wage" of at least $12 per hour. Today, as high school students, Wage Up OKC has set a goal to partner with more than 200 Oklahoma businesses (they currently have 36 participating partners) over the next four years so more working families in Oklahoma can have access to jobs that will allow them to live above the poverty line.